Be Awesome: Be Patient

We have big dreams. We have so many adventures we want to take on. So many places we want to see. Sometimes it feels like if it doesn’t happen right now, it will never ever happen. Time is such an impossible concept to really grasp. A day at work can sometimes drag on for ages, and yet another year has come to an end without me fully realizing it was happening.

As we watched the sun set over the pacific ocean on New Year’s Day, there was a moment of sullenness as we realized how far we still have to go to reach some of our goals. But it was also this moment when I realized how far we’d come. It was only two years ago that we were counting every dollar, trying to scrape by, worrying about making the rent, not even bothering to dream about the future. It seemed like nothing good would ever happen to us.

How very wrong I was. We both finally have jobs that we love where we are treated with respect and paid a fair wage. If you’ve never worked in a toxic work environment or been paid much less than you know you’re worth, I’m not sure you can fully appreciate how revelatory it is to not wish you’d be hit by a train on your way to work. We are able to enjoy our lives and still save money. It is only because of what we have accomplished that we are even able to dream about bigger things in our future. That alone is worth celebrating.

I learned at that moment to take a deep breath. Be patient. Let life take its course. 10 years ago, my life was completely different. I literally could not have possibly imagined that I would be sitting here today in Honolulu next to the most charming and loving man I’ve ever known. If that much can change, how can I possibly foresee what will happen in the next 10 years.

Plans and dreams are excellent. I would never for one moment suggest that you not bother with them. But don’t let yourself get hung up on what you haven’t done yet. Allow life to be lived. Smile right now. Wait. Breathe. Be patient. Your life is already awesome, and chances are, if you live it with love, it will continue to be more awesome. Maybe those plans and dreams will come to pass, or maybe your life will take you on a path that is even more remarkable than you could have dreamed.